1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to electric rotary lawnmowers and, more particularly, to battery-operated riding rotary lawnmowers.
2. Technical Background
Battery-operated riding mowers are known which have three wheels and reel-type blades in front of the vehicle. The reel blades rotate vertically in response to the forward motion of the mower. These mowers are useful mainly for mowing golf putting greens. Rotary blades are not suitable for these mowers because they would cause a lack of balance and be unstable. U.S. Pat. No. 4,145,864, issued to Brewster, discloses a battery-powered push rotary lawnmower. This lawnmower has a single motor, with a motor controller and potentiometer, which rotates a blade horizontally under the motor. The wheels are not powered by the motor. Although this type of battery operated rotary mower may be useful as a push-mower, there is no indication in the prior art that a battery-operated riding rotary lawnmower would be feasible or effective.
A battery-operated riding rotary lawnmower is desirable because it would operate cleaner, more dependably, and with less maintenance than a gasoline powered riding rotary lawnmower. The most efficient, cost-effective, and stable battery-operated riding rotary lawnmower would have four wheels and a single motor that drives both the rear wheels and the horizontal rotary cutting blades. Such a mower has not been available because no one has devised a practical way to integrate a plurality of batteries and a single electric motor to drive rear wheels and rotary blades on a four-wheeled chassis while maintaining balance and stability of the vehicle.